


Plague in the Dream

by Inquisitorkira



Series: Cookies and Crumbs [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Angst, Dragon Age - Freeform, Dreams, F/F, I'm terrible with lore, Implied Sexual Content, Language, Some Fluff, fade stuff, inquisitor Cadash isn't allowed to sleep any more, so if I got fade stuff wrong let me know
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-16
Updated: 2015-05-16
Packaged: 2018-03-30 21:37:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3952669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inquisitorkira/pseuds/Inquisitorkira
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dwarves aren't supposed to dream. Sequel to 'Toxicity in the Family'.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Plague in the Dream

**Author's Note:**

> Ma halani: 'Help me.'

Sera didn’t remember falling asleep, but she knew she must have been sleeping, because she awoke- begrudgingly- when she heard her Dwarf fussing. Piss. Lymrik hadn’t had a nightmare since her mysterious trip to Orzammar.  Sera had foolishly thought that whatever happened there had cured the dreams. It wasn’t right, dwarfs dreaming. Had something to do with that thing on her hand, she supposed. It was a quick thing to fix though, she just had to wake her up. Sera grunted, and tapped the inquisitor on the shoulder.

“Tadwinks,” She said quietly. Lymrik didn’t seem to hear. “Tadwinks, come on, wake up.”  Sera grew frightened as the dwarf went from muttering and tossing, to violent shaking, her head falling back against the bed as she wailed. “S’not funny.” She grabbed her shoulders now, as well as she could through all the thrashing. She dug her nails into the skin there, not trying to hurt her – she would never hurt her - just trying to shock her awake. But it was like she wasn’t even in there. Lymrik’s freckled face was contorted in pain, wordless screams falling out of her mouth. “Oh shite,” Sera leapt from the bed. If she lay next to her lover any longer, she would likely catch a fist to her mouth.  It was unreal, seeing Lymrik convulsing on the bed, screaming now, like she was bloody dying. W _as_ she dying? Sera had no way of knowing. “Oh frick- Wake up dammit!”

Sera wasn’t good at this sort of thing. She was always one to cause trouble - not fix it. But she had managed to fix Lymrik well enough when she’d been stuck through by a poisoned dagger and left for dead. Just the thought of it made her skin grow cold and shaky. But she had _helped_. So there must have been _something_ she could do now. Yet, standing their stiff as the poor girl groaned and trembled, she realized that there wasn’t a thing she could do. Not a frickin’ thing. And that scared her more than anything, worse than not knowing if all that Andraste horse-crap was really real. She bit her lip so hard she thought it would bleed, and then suddenly she knew exactly what to do. Or, who _would_ know what to do exactly. She didn’t like it. But then Lymrik screamed again, and she realized it didn’t friggin’ matter what she liked. She searched frantically for her tunic, and pulled it on. She remembered before leaving to at least try to pull the bedclothes over Lymrik, who was still in her small clothes, and then bolted for the door. She didn’t want to leave her there alone. Andraste, what if something happened in the short while Sera was gone? But she had to be sensible – she couldn’t very well _carry her_ cross the great hall in the middle of the night, and there wasn’t any staff up this late to call for help. So, with a hearty swear, she threw one last worried look to her love and hurried down the steps. She tried to make her feet go faster than her heart was beating, but it felt like it took an eternity to reach the rotunda. The torches were still lit. That was good. Maybe, just maybe, she would get another miracle. Not that she even deserved it, but she was bloody sure Lymrik did.

            _____________________

            Solas was not too absorbed in his studies to miss the sound of bear feet against the stone floor, approaching the rotunda. It was very curious that someone would be up at this hour in this part of sky hold. He suspected Dorian had returned from his nightly escapades in the tavern to read as he often did, but he would think it distasteful to walk about skyhold without any footwear. He closed his book and set it on the desk. Something was not right. He felt – well, he wasn’t sure what, but something within the fade was unsettling. He strode to the closed door, and pulled it open. A small body collided into him, and he stepped back, startled.

            “Oy, Elfy! You should watch- never mind that it’s friggin important I-“

            “Sera?” He blinked. “What are you doing here at this hour?” He blinked again, upon noticing her legs were bear. “And why aren’t you properly clothed?”

            “It doesn’t bloody matter! It’s Lymrik she’s- well you’ll see, I guess, just hurry up! ”

            She was being very direct, which differed greatly from her usual ramblings, and had yet to articulate a crude comment about her breeches. Something was very wrong indeed. He nodded curtly and followed after her towards the Inquisitor’s quarters.

            He wasn’t sure what to expect, but it wasn’t what he found. In all his travels he had never seen a thing like it. It was a testament to the strength of the walls and doors of skyhold that the inquisitor’s wailing could not be heard from the great hall- In the confines of her quarters, they were deafening. Loud, wretched sounds that didn’t remind Solas of anything he had ever encountered. Sera was absolutely beside herself , and Solas actually felt himself sympathizing with her. It was evident in the way that she wrung her hands and bit her lip that she cared deeply for the Inquisitor and would give anything to see her better.  There had been a time when Solas had cared for someone that deeply. He too had stood by helplessly, unable to end their pain. He blinked away the thought, and called out to the inquisitor. Unsurprisingly, she did not respond. “It will be easier to reach her from inside the fade.”

“Alright, whatever, just hurry it up!”

Sera didn’t once turn away from the dwarf writhing beside her as he pulled the heavy desk chair to face the bed and began his careful meditation.

It took longer than usual to get through the lull between the realm of reality and the realm of dreams. But Solas was prepared for that. He steadied his breathing, concentrating on the brightness radiating from the fade, and found himself there. Everything was wrong. There were no spirits to welcome him, nothing to guide him. The scenery was a dim and broken reflection of what it was at adamant. It was most unsettling.

 ‘ _Inquisitor?’_

_‘There is no one here by that name,_ ’ Something told him. It wasn’t a spirit.

_‘I know she is here.’_ Solas replied calmly. _‘I need to get her back to the realm of the living. She does not belong here.’_

_‘The dwarf girl.’_

_‘Yes. Can you take me to her?’_

_‘I cannot.”_

_‘It is urgent, Ma halani’_

_‘Who are you to ask for help?’_

He hesitated. He was unsure who or what he was speaking with. Nothing in this damaged part of the fade was clear. He did not want to divulge anything that could still be kept a secret. But he could feel his connection wavering. He did not have time to worry about secrecy if he wished to save the inquisitor.

_‘Fen’Harel.’_

Suddenly he was pushed somewhere else, far from where he had entered the fade. It was darker here, and even more broken. He felt the overwhelming presence of fear and struggled to keep it away. It could have been lingering effects from the Fear Demon at Adamant, perhaps awakened by Lymrik’s encounter with her Aunt. Solas had not heard what was said before she was assaulted, but he was doubtful that a casual exchange was the cause of all of this.

He found her then, as he thought of her. A version of Lymrik as a child was cowering behind a large boulder. He couldn’t see what she was hiding from but she looked terrified. Tears were streaming down her face, blood clung to her tunic. “Inquisitor?”

_‘There is no one here by that name’_

The presence was right. The piece of the young dwarf that was trapped here inside the fade was not the inquisitor, at least not yet. He tried again, softening his voice. “Lymrik?”

“Who’s there?” Her hands shook as she moved them to cover her face. Solas knew that she could not see him, though he did not know why.

“I am a friend.”

“I don’t have any friends, not after- not anymore!” The shaking in her hands was growing violent and faintly Solas could hear screaming penetrating the realm of dreams from reality.

“Please, you must remain calm.”

“Why? Don’t you _understand_? They’re going to find me and put that _thing_ on my face!”

Solas could feel the hurt and fear radiating from her. He had to be careful to watch his words.

“Who is looking for you?”

“The Carta! They send the Carta when there’s no one left who wants you! Don’t you understand?”

Solas realized that this version of Lymrik had not yet been marked with the Castless brand. He knew little of Dwarven customs, but he had assumed that the Inquisitor had been marked as a baby, like most dwarves who barred the symbol. He suddenly feared he was looking into a part of Lymrik she had never wanted anyone, not even Sera, to see. His sense of urgency increased.

“Please, Lady Cadash-“

The shaking, which had radiated to the entire space around them, stopped abruptly and the distant screaming turned to stark silence. Lymrik’s hands fell from her face as she finally looked at him.

“That isn’t my name any more.”

“It is where I am from.”

“How is that possible?” Her voice was still small, but she sounded older now. “ _Where_ are you from?”

He smiled gently. “Another place.”

“How- how can I get there?”

“You have to wake up.” He sounded unintentionally apologetic as he offered her his hand. “Come with me.”

She looked at his hand for a long moment. And then the shaking began again.

“No I can’t!” She shrank behind the rock. “If I leave they will find me!”

“I promise they cannot come after you where we are going.”

She shook her head hard. She was changing before his eyes, growing older. Her tear stained cheeks were noticeably sharper, and the brand had taken its place there. “No I can’t. I have to look after Shamus and Braden, I promised my parents I would!” Solas noticed for the first time the small dwarven toddlers wailing beside her.

The presence of fear was preying on the most vulnerable parts of Lymrik’s past, he realized.

“You can still look after them when you wake up,” he lied.

“ _Liar_!”

One of the children went into a fit, and then stilled. Lymrik turned to him tenderly. “Shamus?” The noise beyond the fade was audible again. Solas feared she would injure herself or Sera out in the real world, and tried to draw her attention back to him.

“Lymrik, it’s imperative you listen to me.”

“Shamus? Shamus, wake up!”

“You _must_ come with me. Lives count on your leadership! If the Inquisition loses you to the Fade-“

“Dammit! Please, _please_ wake up!” She had turned to the other small body, that had also gone startlingly silent. “I promised father. I can’t break my promise!”

He had to act fast. He could not physically touch her here unless she willed it, and fear had completely gripped her mind. He needed something stronger than fear. He could hear Sera’s crude swearing pouring into the fade from reality. What would happen to Sera if he couldn’t save Lymrik? She could become a threat to the inquisition, perhaps join Corephyus’s forces in the aftermath of her grief. She was unstable already, and losing someone so close would be just what it would take to- _Unless._

“Lady Cadash.” At the sound of her name, she turned reluctantly back to him. “There is someone where I am from who cares very much about you.”

“Is it father? Is he alive where you’re from?”

“No, it isn’t family. A lover.”

Though the world around them still shook, she was changing again, getting older. She appeared to be a young adult now, fairly close to her age in reality. “Who?”

“Her name is Sera. She’s an elf,” Solas paused, “though she is often reluctant to admit it.”

“I don’t believe you!”

_‘Show her_ ’ he felt the presence of a spirit he could not name.

Yes. His words weren’t enough to gain the trust of her mind. He needed proof.

______________

Sera was sitting cross legged on the floor, palms clamped hard over her ears. She watched Lymrik carefully, but she wanted desperately to look away. Her heart was just about to jump out of her. She couldn’t stand it, just w _atching_ and w _aiting_ and… through her fingers she heard a gasp, different than the rest of the noises.

“Elfy?” She whirled around. Solas was up and stumbling around, like he had had too much to drink. Had he even ever _seen_ a drink? Sera blinked. “Well? Did you fix her?” That was a stupid question. She had stopped screaming somewhere after Sera had stopped counting the minutes, but it picked right back up again. She definitely was _not_ fixed.

“You must go into the fade with me.”

All of Sera’s guts jumped into her throat. “Uh-uh, no _way_ , I’m not going back there,” She stood, backing up defensively, “That spidery-demony- _thing_ is probably there waiting to bite my head off!”

“Do you love her?”

Sera blinked again, stunned. “That’s not just something you can just up and ask someone while everything is going to shit!”

Suddenly Solas was right there in front of her, hands clenched into fists, face set into an angry glare. He didn’t need to say anything else- she got the message.

“This will fix her?” Her voice almost couldn’t be heard over the screaming.

“Yes,” he paused. “I believe so.”

Normally, that wouldn’t be nearly enough to convince her to go anywhere near the fade. But this was different. This _mattered._ “Andraste’s arse.” She breathed. “Alright, let’s get this friggin’ over with.”

“Close your eyes.” She did.

She didn’t know how, but everything changed. It was different than the last time. _Really_ different. Dark, and angry, and empty. But so far, no spiders. So maybe that part was ok.

“Solas?”

“I am here.”

She couldn’t see him. But she followed his voice. It was all so w _eird_. She wasn’t really there, not like the first time. She could feel her body back in Lymrik’s quarters. But all she could see was the fade. Scary. The sooner she got out of here the better. She didn’t find Solas. She found a rock, a single bolder in the middle of all the dark. Someone was huddled behind it, sobbing.

“’Ello?”

The crying subsided. “Are you her?”

It was Lymrik’s voice. Sera couldn’t see her, but she _knew_ she was there. “Am I _who_?”

“There was- someone here. He told me to come back with him, cus there was someone who cared.”

“Well, yea.” She replied quietly. “I guess that’s me, innit?  Normally, I’d say not to listen to Elfy cus he’s got his head crammed up in ancient rubbish.” Lymrik laughed, and Sera paused to marvel at the sound of it. Everything was so different here. “But this isn’t exactly normal, is it?” There wasn’t a response. “Why can’t I see you?”

“I can’t leave here.” It wasn’t an answer, not really.

“Well why can’t you?”

“Lukas said I’m not allowed to love anybody but him.”

“Lukas?” Sera was stunned. “Who in the bleeding hell is that?”

“He said the Carta took me away from him. Turned me back into a dwarf.”

Sera didn’t have a frickin’ clue what was happening. It was the fade and it’s, well, weirdness, she guessed. Going back into Lymrik’s past into places it had no right to be in. She suddenly remembered why that name was familiar. “Lukas- Isn’t that the son of that mage who took you in?”

The silence in the fade was louder than the screaming out in the real world.

 “How do you know that?”

“Because you told me, you arse.” The silence droned on again. Sera didn’t like it, she had to break it. “Can’t you come out now, so I can see you?”

“You aren’t going to hurt me?”

Sera was sure she had made her palms bleed from clenching her nails into her fists, back in the real world. “You really are an arse- Why would I hurt you? That would be stupid, wouldn’t it? I bloody love you!” She hadn’t meant that to slip, even here in the fade. But she wasn’t as guarded when like this. She hoped to herself that the mistake wouldn’t cost her the life of her dwarf. “Please come out?”

Slowly, the boulder melted away, revealing Lymrik’s small form huddled behind it. She unraveled herself, looked up at Sera, and gasped.

“ _Oh. You’re beautiful_!”

It went black then, everything in the Fade and everything that was real. Sera started to panic. Had she been too late? It seemed she was always too late to save _anyone._ If she wasn’t already dead, she might just kill Solas when she saw him-

“Sera?”

She was back in the real world, facing Solas, who looked surprisingly relieved. It wasn’t him who had spoken.

“ _Tadwinks?_ ”

She was there, and she was _awake_. A little banged up, but her eyes were open as she looked up at Sera expectantly.

Sera leapt for the bed. “Tadwinks!” She wrapped her arms around her neck and buried her head in deep red hair. “ _Bloody hell_ you aren’t allowed to sleep _ever again_!”

Someone cleared their throat.

“Oh!” Sera had forgotten they weren’t yet alone.  “ _Elfy_ -“

“Solas!” Sera squeaked as Lymrik pushed her off and scrambled to pull the bed clothes over herself. “What the _fuck_ are you doing in my quarters?!” Sera just laughed and pulled herself back on top of the dwarf as Solas made an excuse and left the room. When the door had closed Lymrik sighed and pulled her fingers through Sera’s short hair. “Another nightmare, I’m guessing.”

“Worse.”

“How much worse?”

Sera looked up at her. “You really don’t remember?”

“Not a thing.”

Sera should have told her right then. It was just three little words- it wouldn’t kill her. She might not get the chance to ever say it. Instead, she snorted and stuttered, “You just- you’re really friggin’ loud, you know? I can’t sleep a wink.”

Lymrik laughed, bright blue eyes seemingly laughing with her, and it reminded Sera of how she had sounded in the fade. So familiar yet so strange. “Then maybe we shouldn’t go back to sleep.”

Sera smirked, catching on quickly. “I guess you’re not going to need your breeches back?”

“Not yet.”

Sera sighed into the kiss planted on her lips. She’d be fine with never sleeping again, if it meant never having to spend a second without the woman she loved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
